Why?
by Proud-to-be-Insane
Summary: He was just a child. What kind of monster could do that to a child?...
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed or any of its characters.

Summary: He was just a child. What kind of monster could do that to a child...

A/N Yes it's me, starting ANOTHER story. But this one is way different from my other two, WAY different, and I don't even really know where it came from actually... But anyway, I know I've not given you much with the summary but I hoped I've peaked your curiosity enough for you to want to read on!

Just a little info;

Chris is thirteen and an only child. Yes I know, "Where's Wyatt?!", but don't worry. He'll turn up later on in the story. So yes, Chris is a Halliwell, Piper and Leo are his parents etc.

The content of the story may offend some readers. I'm in a bit of a dilemma because I don't want to give the exact content that may be offensive right now because I'll give it away, but I don't want stupid flames from people because I DIDN'T put a warning... –sigh- Well the story is M rated, let that be the warning. I'll give the exact warnings at the end of this chapter. Plus, if you've read any of my other stories, you'll have some idea of what kind of stuff I write.

This fic is a non-magic fic. So they're not witches and Leo isn't an Elder. Piper still owns P3 and has her own restaurant (like it said in season 8) and Leo is a doctor at the San Francisco Memorial. Paige is still a Social Worker and Phoebe still has her advice column in the Bay Mirror. Henry is still a police officer, and Coop is a date advisor (think of the movie Hitch, with Will Smith :P)

And another point; Chris is a Dimale. ALL CREDIT GOES TO LONG-LIVE-CHRISTOPHER FOR THIS IDEA! Dimales are her creation, and she has given me permission to make Chris one. In case you haven't read her two slash stories, a Dimale is a male (the whole XY chromosomes thing) who is born with traits of both men and women, including the ability to conceive children. It's rare; less than 1 in 150 boys are born Dimales. Dimales are essentially boys, but they have unmistakable feminine features; narrower waist, wider hips and softer facial features. They can't reproduce as a male.

Also in LLC's story, What is and What Should Be, Dimale's aren't accepted and are seen as freaks, genetic anomalies, but in mine they're more accepted. Not a lot more accepted, but he at least has some friends in this fic! Oh, and because Chris is a Dimale, there'll be cross dressing in this. Shudder at the thought? Don't read then:P

And on that note, I recommend her stories **Promises and Lies** and **What is and What Should Be** to you, because they're both awesome!

ONE more note!: This fic's main character is obviously Chris, but Piper's POV is going to be featured a lot.

But anyway! This fic is pretty dark, but I hope you enjoy it despite that! This chapter is just a teaser, hence the fact it's so short, but the ones after this will be longer.

* * *

Piper Halliwell slung her bag tightly over her shoulder, trying to keep her breath steady as her high heeled steps echoed around the stark white halls. Sometimes she passed nurses and doctors, but otherwise, the halls were clear. And to be honest, she doubted she would have paid much attention if they'd been busy. Her mind was too far away from this at the moment. 

She turned a corner and slowed as she reached the double doors leading to the ward. A lump was forming in her throat as she looked at the sign, but she swallowed it and pushed her way inside.

Piper didn't think she'd ever been more nervous and scared in her entire life. Her hands were shaking, her palms clammy, as she passed the nurses station and finally reached the right room and slowly entered. There were four people in there, but Piper didn't pay any attention to the other three.

Tears welled in her eyes as she walked over to the end bed. She forced herself to steady her quivering breath and plaster a smile on her face as she reached her youngest son.

Her baby... He was only thirteen years old; he shouldn't be in a ward like this...

His face was chalk white, and Piper noticed that he was shaking slightly too. His expression was a mixture of shock and confusion as he looked down at the small bundle held awkwardly in his arms. He looked so lost.

Piper swallowed and pulled up a chair beside him. He looked so small compared to the other three, so young... But then, they were all in their twenties. They were all chatting happily to their family members, smiling at their babies and their doting husbands.

"Hey sweetie." Piper forced out, reaching out her hand and stroking his own. She rapidly blinked back her tears, forcing herself to be strong.

Chris didn't respond at first. He just stared down at the newborn baby, pain flitting over his face as he gurgled and moved his little hand.

Piper focused her attention on the baby. Another boy. He was little compared to the other babies she'd seen, but he was healthy. And he looked so much like Chris. Brown hair, blue-ish green eyes, which she knew would turn completely green when he was older.

"How are you feeling?" she asked gently.

Chris shrugged slightly, keeping his eyes averted from her and biting softly on his bottom lip.

"Can I hold him?" she asked quietly.

Chris nodded quickly, too quickly, and held out the baby to her. She took him, gently supported his head, and cradled him in her arms. The lump in her throat started forming again as she looked down at her grandson. A grandson she shouldn't have had until 10 years from now. And especially not like this.

"So...so what are you going to call him?" she asked, trying to keep her voice light.

Chris shrugged again. "Dunno." he mumbled.

There was a pause as Piper rocked the baby gently.

"You're dad is coming in to see you." she said. "He couldn't get away from work when I left, but he'll be here soon."

"Okay." Chris said quietly, looking down at his hands. His long hair fell over his face, so Piper couldn't see his expression.

"He looks just like you." Piper said kindly, trying to perk him up. But it just seemed to make matters worse.

"Does he?" Chris sniffed.

"Of course he does-

"I think he looks like him." Chris uttered, his voice catching as he cast a glance at the baby.

Piper felt her heart breaking all over again, and she reached forward and grasped Chris's hand with her free one.

"Chris, look at me." she said firmly. "This baby is a Halliwell. He has NOTHING to do with him! He's yours."

"But that's the thing mom," Chris said thickly, looking at his mom through glassy eyes. "I don't want him..."

Piper opened her mouth to reply, his eyes welling up, but she felt a hand on her shoulder and she looked up. Leo was standing beside her, looking slightly grim but trying to smile.

"Hey honey." she said quietly, biting her lip to stop herself from bursting into tears.

"Hey." he replied, pulling up another chair and sitting down. He looked at his son and smiled kindly. "Hey Chris."

"Hi dad." Chris mumbled, going back to looking at his hands.

Leo looked at the baby boy in Piper's arms and Piper saw anger flash across his face. But as fast as it appeared, it was gone, and he reached out to stroke the baby's little fist with his finger. Piper knew the anger wasn't pointed at the baby though. He'd done the same thing she had when he first looked at the baby. He'd thought of how he'd been conceived in the first place. Of what that monster did...

"When can I come home?" Chris asked, breaking her from her thoughts.

"Uh, later on today the midwife said." Piper forced out.

"Okay." Chris whispered. He looked longingly out the window to his left, watching the tree swaying outside.

Before...before what happened, Chris had always been an outdoor person. He loved playing soccer with his friends, or hanging out at the park. But he'd changed; they all had.

"We have the nursery all sorted." Piper said after blinking a few times. "Your grandpa came round to help finish it."

"Okay." Chris muttered. He was looking down at his hands again.

Piper and Leo glanced at each other, not sure what to say to him. What could they say?

"He's beautiful." Leo said, referring to the baby.

Piper watched Chris, looking for his reaction. He didn't say anything, didn't utter a single word, but Piper watched his hands, saw them clutching the sheets so tightly his knuckles turned white. She took in a deep breath and nodded in agreement with her husband.

"Here, why don't you hold him?" She suggested , and Leo nodded. She carefully handed over the little baby to her husband.

"He's so small." Leo uttered, voicing her thoughts.

"He didn't feel very small when I was giving birth to him..." Chris mumbled bitterly.

Piper's mouth twitched upwards at the corners, but she didn't know if he was joking or not. He just reminded her so much of her when she'd had him...

Then sadness swept through her again because she realised... Chris was a mother now. A mother at thirteen...

She didn't know how he was going to cope.

* * *

Visiting time was over, and Piper and Leo were reluctantly making their way across the car park to their cars. They walked in silence, too deep in their thoughts of Chris and the baby, to talk to one another. Piper was so preoccupied that she didn't realise she'd reached her car until Leo gently placed his hand on her shoulder. 

"Are you alright?" he asked quietly.

Piper nodded, tears forming rapidly and her voice cracking as she said; "Yeah, I'm great. Our thirteen year old has just had a baby as a result of being raped; I feel fucking fantastic!"

She looked up at her husband angrily, but her anger slowly ebbed away when she saw the understanding look of pain in his eyes. Her face crumpled, and the tears spilled down her cheeks as she buried her face into his chest.

"I'm sorry Leo." she sobbed. "I just...it's just so unfair."

"I know..." Leo whispered soothingly. He held her close and stroked her hair with one hand. "I know..."

Piper kept sobbing, her shoulders shaking, and her tears making damp patches on Leo's shirt. She knew he was crying too, because she felt the tears dripping on to her head.

One man..It'd only taken _one man_ to tear apart their lives, because he hadn't been able to stop himself. Because he had made the choice to hurt her child when he could have kept walking.

It'd taken only one man, with that one act, to change Chris's his life forever...

That one man, that _monster_, had stolen his innocence. And Piper couldn't understand why.

* * *

Well, a bit late to state the warnings, but here we go: rape, mpreg, slash, cross dressing, bad language, and _possible _drug and alcohol abuse. 

I told you it was really short! But it was just a teaser and the next chapter will be my usual length. Please review and tell me what you think! Flames will be used to warm me up, because I'm frickin' freezing my butt off here!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N Hello ya'll! A fairly quick update if I do say so myself, and I hope you enjoy it (somewhat. You'll see what I mean). I can't believe I got eleven reviews! I had this feeling I'd only get around five for some reason...

But anyway! Thanks to everyone that reviewed! Your reviews motivated me to get this chapter done, so thank you!

Just to clarify; Chris is a Dimale and Dimales have nothing to do with magic. They're as natural as females and males. The reason I'm saying is because someone was pondering how he could have a baby if it was a non-magic fic.

Warnings: Rape and cross dressing (don't like, then don't read! Dimale's wear female clothing as well as male clothing)

You'll be pleased to know this Author Note is A LOT shorter than last chapters, and that I'm done! So I'll just shut up and let you get on with reading:-P

* * *

_8 and a half months earlier..._

Piper carefully sprinkled the right amount of flour into the mixture, keeping an experienced eye on how much she was adding. Then putting the small bag of flour down, she picked up the wooden spoon and beat the ingredients together. She'd made pancakes so many times before that she didn't need scales to measure the ingredients any more.

She heard footsteps behind her and she turned her head, giving her son a smile as he walked into the kitchen rubbing his eyes sleepily. He'd obviously just woken, judging by his half-asleep look and his hair, which was sitting out in places. He was still wearing his rumpled bed clothes.

"Morning sweetie." Piper said cheerfully. She didn't know why, but she felt in a very good mood today.

"Mornin'..." Chris mumbled, and he yawned as he sat down on a stool at the marble island.

"The pancakes aren't ready; why don't you go get dressed?" Piper suggested as she poured some of the mixture on to the hot pan.

"Aunt Phoebe is hogging the bathroom." Chris stated simply, and he placed his chin in his upturned hand, looking as if he could fall as asleep right there.

Piper rolled her eyes and sighed at this. That was why she got up early. Her younger sister had always been an insufferable bathroom hogger.

"What about the other one?" she asked, waiting in front of the stove with a spatula in hand.

"Uncle Henry takes, like, a day to shave." Chris grumbled, and Piper smiled.

"What's the rest of the brood doing?" she queried, wondering if she should wait before she started preparing the scrambled eggs.

Chris shrugged his slender shoulders. "Gettin' dressed I guess. I heard aunt Paige yelling at Lola for tying Penny's shoelaces to the bed leg."

Piper frowned, confused. "She tied shoelaces to a bed leg...?"

"Penny had the shoes on. She fell when she tried to walk."

Piper pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh.

"Yeah, I thought it was funny too."

Piper smiled at her son over her shoulder, and focused her attention back on the pancakes.

* * *

"Chris, come on! You're going to be late!" 

Piper stood at the bottom of the stairs, tapping her foot impatiently. She banged the wall a couple of times with her fist to get his attention.

"I'm coming!" Chris called back.

"Hurry up!" Piper shouted. She sighed irritably and gave Paige a small smile as she hurried her three daughters through the foyer. _They _were ready for school at least!

"Bye Auntie Piper!" the three girls chorused as Paige opened the front door.

"Bye girls!" Piper said. She smiled at her sister. "See you later."

"See ya!" Paige called breathlessly, and she hurried out of the door, closing it behind her.

Piper sighed again, and glared at the ceiling. Phoebe and Paige had left with their kids, Coop and Henry were off to work, as was Leo, but Piper? She was still stuck in the manor because Chris was taking so long.

"Chris!" she yelled up the stairs, and she banged the wall again.

"Alright!" Chris yelled back. Piper crossed her arms across her chest and she rolled her eyes when she heard him stomping down the stairs huffily. He'd only turned thirteen two months ago but he had definitely reached the teenage years now.

Chris finally reached her, and stopped, glaring at her. Piper raised her eyebrows, her eyes sweeping over his outfit.

"You're wearing that to school?" she asked, giving the clothes a disapproving look.

Chris's shoulders sagged and he shook his head at her. "Stop being old fashioned mom."

Piper blanched and went on the defensive as her son sidled past her to pick up his messenger bag.

"I'm not being old fashioned, I just don't think you should be wearing a mini skirt to school!"

Chris looked down at his outfit; a swishy white skirt, baby blue snug-cut shirt, and white tennis shoes. He'd woven a pale blue ribbon through his hair, looped it at the base of his neck, up around his head and tied it below one ear, the ends trailing down at his shoulder.

He looked back up at his mom, with his eyebrows raised and a smile playing on his lips.

"Mom, if I wore a mini skirt to school, I'd be shot!" he half laughed. "It reaches my knees!"

"Oh fine." Mom grumbled. "But put a jacket on, I don't want you getting cold!"

"It's sunny outside!" Chris grinned at his mom, and slung his messenger bag over one shoulder. "Quit fussing."

"Never." Piper smiled. She looked at the ribbon fondly, remembering when he was little and she used to fix his hair like that.

"I'll see you later mom." Chris said, giving his mom one more smile, before opening the front door.

"Have a good day!" Piper called after him, and he exited, closing the door shut behind him.

Piper sighed and checked her watch. She was REALLY late...

* * *

Chris watched the clock ticking on the wall anxiously, chewing absently on the end of his pencil as the hand ticked towards the 12. His teacher was writing on the board, indicating what homework they needed to complete for next lesson, but Chris wasn't paying attention. He sat up straighter in his seat as the hand reached the 12, placing both hands on his desk. And sure enough, not 5 seconds later, the bell rang, indicating the end of the day. 

Chris grinned and scraped his chair back, standing up. He grabbed his bag and tossed his pencil inside, before slinging it over his shoulder.

"Alright, class dismissed! Remember to tuck your chairs in!" the teacher called above the loud babble, and he sat down wearily at his desk, pinching the bridge of his nose. He was getting too old for this teaching lark.

Chris manoeuvred his way around the desks towards his five friends, who were standing in a group beside the door. On his way though, a burly jock banged into him as he marched to the door.

"Watch it freak!" the jock sneered at him.

"Watch this bone head!" Chris's friend Brian called over, and he gestured rudely at him.

"Hey, fuck you, you little-

"Language Mr Braxton!" the teacher warned, casting a disapproving eye at the large teenager over the top of his glasses.

"Whatever." the jock muttered, and he barrelled his way out the door, bashing into Brian on the way out.

"Jerk." Brian muttered, and he grinned as Chris walked over.

"You didn't need to stick up for me." Chris said, as the six of them left the classroom and headed down the hall.

"That wanker needed to be told straight!" stated Liam; a lanky kid with floppy blonde hair.

"He doesn't have two brain cells to rub together." grinned Zack. He was oldest of the group, with spiky brown hair that he dutifully gelled every morning. Brian was the second oldest, with short black hair, and dark skin.

"What, and you do?" Chris asked, and he grinned as Zack flipped him off.

His five friends; Zack, Brian, Liam, Lucinda (Lucy for short) and Charlotte.

Chris was grateful to have them as friends. Being a Dimale, he was considered a bit of a freak, and he'd been scared that he wouldn't make any friends when he started the school (like what had happened at Elementary school) but they didn't seem to mind that he was different from them. They treated him the same; they didn't even care when he wore feminine clothes, like today. In fact, the two girls liked when he did so, because they loved to compare outfits which Chris found slightly annoying.

"Language Zack!" Lucy pretended to scold, grinning.

"It was sign language; it don't count!" Zack retorted, and he stuck his tongue out at her.

"Try doing that to Mr. Martin, _then_ we'll see if it doesn't count." said Charlotte.

There were others of course, like that jerk in class, that didn't accept him so readily, and he'd been the subject of a lot of teasing. But having grown used to it over the years, he'd grown a thick skin and the comments seemed to bounce off of him now. Unless they were particularly hurtful.

"Oh no..." Brian groaned, breaking Chris from his thoughts. "There's Kenzie and Marisa."

The three boys looked in the same direction, and sure enough Kenzie Cole and Marisa Sanchez were making their way towards them. The two girls were insufferably annoying, and had attached themselves to Brian like leeches.

"Hey Brian!" the called in unison as they reached them.

"Hi." Brian muttered grumpily.

"Where are you off to?" Kenzie asked.

Brian shrugged indifferently, despite knowing exactly where they were going. They were going to the park; their usual hang out.

"Well, can we come with?" Marisa asked, with the widest smile Chris had ever seen.

"Uh..." Brian started, looking helpless.

"Actually, we're all just heading home." Liam cut in. "So there'd be know point, right Bri?"

Brian quickly nodded, and the girls' shoulders sagged, disappointment clear on their faces.

"Oh, alright then..." Kenzie trailed off sadly.

"Right well...bye!" Brian said quickly, and he hurried off, gesturing for his friends to follow him. They quickly did so, trying not to laugh at Brian's expense.

"Bye!" Marisa and Kenzie called after him, both of them sounding thoroughly dejected.

"Oh my god..." Zack grinned once they were far enough away to be out of earshot.

"Shut it." Brian grumbled.

"Oh I dunno...Marisa, Kenzie and Bri-an, sittin' in a tree; K-I-S-S-

"I said shut it!" Brian snapped, and he gave Zack a slight shove, Zack laughing his ass off.

* * *

Chris pushed back off the ground lightly with his feet, making the swing he was sitting on move slightly. Charlotte was on the swing next to him, Lucy was sitting on the slide and the three boys were on the roundabout. 

They'd been there for over two hours, just hanging out and mostly, making fun of Brian and his two admirers. He'd scowled at them and huffed until the subject had been changed.

"I need to get going guys." said Chris after looking at his watch. He stopped swinging and stood up.

"Already?" Zack asked.

"Yeah." Chris said reluctantly as he picked up his bag and slung it over his shoulder. "My mom thinks I'm at home and she'll be back from work soon."

"Ok, see you later." said Liam.

"See you!" Chris called back, as he started crossing the park. The rest of his friends called their goodbyes as he crossed the grass, and reached the street.

He hoped his mom hadn't gotten home early, otherwise he'd be in trouble. She'd clearly told him the week before that he had to go straight home after school, finish his homework, then he could go out. But since she wasn't in...

Chris glanced at his watch again as he walked. She'd be home in half an hour. It was already starting to get dark, being January and still in winter. He shivered, wishing he'd brought a jacket like his mom had told him, but the sun had been shining so brightly this morning.

The street was quite quiet, with hardly anyone around. Only a few cars passed him as he walked past the tall buildings on his way home.

But then he heard footsteps behind him. Not right behind him, but he could still here them. He turned his head to look, but strangely there was no-one there. Frowning, he looked back in the right direction, wondering if he'd imagined them.

The footsteps started again, and Chris looked once more. But there was no-one there. Chris picked up his pace, biting softly on his bottom lip. He had the weirdest feeling he was being watched, followed...

There was an alleyway ahead of him on the right. It was a shortcut home, and Chris walked even faster until he reached it. He turned into it, and slowed his pace slightly, his heart beating rapidly. Letting out a deep breath, he shook his head.

"Get a grip Chris." Chris muttered to himself. Why would someone be following him?

He went to pick up his pace again, get home before his mom did, but at that moment it became clear that someone had been following him.

Whoever it was grabbed him from behind, and roughly slammed him into the brick wall, face first. The rough texture scraped his skin, and he cried out as his arm was twisted painfully behind his back. The person was pressing themselves tightly against him, stopping him from making any movement.

"Scream and I'll kill you." a man's hoarse voice hissed in his ear, and Chris's blood ran cold. He recognised that voice... He just couldn't remember from where.

He instinctively struggled, but he got nowhere by doing so. In fact, it seemed to anger his attacker, and he was spun around and shoved violently against the wall again. Chris looked at his face fearfully, but he had a hood up and most of his face was obscured in shadow.

"Don't struggle. It'll only make it worse for you." he threatened, digging his nails painfully into Chris's arms.

Chris's first thought was that he was getting mugged. But why would a grown man mug a thirteen year old kid? He didn't have anything of any value with him.

He was terrified and his heart was pounding painfully in his chest. But that was nothing compared to how he felt when the man hauled him away from the wall, and started to wrestle him to the ground. He started screaming, hoping someone, anyone, would hear, as his attacker pinned him down.

Chris's head snapped to the side as he was hit in the face, hard.

"I told you not to scream!" the man snarled. He used his weight to keep Chris pinned to the concrete ground.

Chris struggled as hard as he could. He kicked and hit and screamed, despite being threatened not to, but the man was just so strong. He easily over-powered him, pinning him down like the child he was.

Chris didn't understand what he wanted. Was it just some random attack? Why would a man just decide to beat him up? But Chris suddenly came to the realisation of what he really wanted, when he started undoing his belt...

Terror swept through him, and he tried even harder to get away. He'd saw on the news a couple of days ago; a fifteen year old girl attacked in an alleyway next to a music store. She'd been on her way home, like he had been. But it was one of those "It won't happen to me" things. He'd never imagined...

Chris screamed again. Surely someone would hear him. The streets couldn't be completely deserted, there had to be SOMEone!

He tried hitting the man again, but he didn't seem to care, too preoccupied on running his hand up Chris's leg, creeping under the soft material of his skirt... Chris started crying, now only half-heartedly struggling and wriggling beneath him.

"Please don't hurt me..." he begged tearfully, and the man leaned in close, pressing his body against his.

"You have no idea how much I've wanted this." he growled in Chris's ear, and Chris felt physically sick when he pressed a forceful kiss against his lips. Chris had his eyes screwed shut, imagining himself somewhere else, somewhere where this wasn't happening.

The man suddenly pulled away slightly, and pressed his hand tightly against Chris's mouth. Chris barely had time to register what was happening, before the most excruciating pain tore through him. He screamed, but the sound was muffled by his attackers hand, and he ended up dissolving into sobs as the pain cut apart his insides, again and again. He tried struggling some more, jerking slightly, but all his strength seemed to have left him. His body went limp and his eyes became unfocused as he mentally begged for it to be over; all the while the monster moved and grunted above him. The tears made salty trails down the side of his face and ran into his hair, as he stared blankly at the wall to the side. He couldn't look at the monster.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity it was over, and the man shuddered and gasped above him. There was a pause as he seemed to collect himself, then he pulled roughly out of him and stood up. Chris didn't move, and he didn't think he could if he wanted to. Is brain was completely numb, and he barely heard his attacker sorted out his clothes and doing up his belt. He just lay there.

He could feel the man watching him, and then he walked over slowly.

"I'm sorry." he uttered, and without saying anything else, he stepped over Chris's limp body and walked out of the alleyway.

Chris wasn't sure how long he lay there, staring at the wall. He was having trouble breathing never mind moving. His mind was still trying to comprehend what had happened, and it was having a tough time doing so.

But slowly, he started to come to his senses, and he blinked a few times. Then he swallowed, and slowly rolled on to his front. He shakily pulled himself up on to his hands and knees, feeling as if his arms were going to give out underneath him, and slowly and unsteadily got to his feet.

He swayed slightly, and put his hand on the wall for support, to try and regain his balance. His messenger bag was lying on the ground, having fallen off his shoulder, and he wearily picked it up. After slinging it on, he blinked again, and started walking. He needed to go home...

He stumbled a few times as he walked. He felt so weak... And mom was going to be angry if she was home before him... He tried to walk faster, but he just couldn't.

So he stumbled along, all the way home. His mind kept replaying what had just happened with that monster, even though he begged the images to stop. He couldn't believe it... things like that happened to other people, not him... what had he ever done to deserve this? What had he done, that made that man decide to rape him?...

* * *

You know what? I feel REALLY bad at the moment... 

Please review, and tell me what you thought of the chapter. Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

Hey there ya'll! I know I'm lacking in updates of my stories, but hopefully this will do for now whilst I work on the others. Thanks to all that reviewed (I really need to get into the habit of replying to reviews again)! Oh! And one more thing:

Me and Long-Live-Christopher have set up a joint account called **P2BIandLLC** to post our joint story! It's not really a story persae, but a bunch of drabbles/scenes that we want to share with you all. The drabbles are little plot bunnies that are, unfortunately, unlikely to grow up to be story rabbits, but we wanted to share the things we think up anyway. We're writing individual scenes, as in not writing them together, and whilst all of mine are going to be about Charmed (Chris and Wyatt of course!) I'm sure LLC will be writing from other fandoms as well as Charmed. I can't remember which ones at the moment but you'll find out once you see it! It shouldn't take us too long to get it up and running so keep an eye out!

And now to the story! Enjoy!

* * *

Chris opened the front door and stepped inside numbly. He closed it behind him slowly until he heard the soft click, and leant against the cool wood for a moment. He could hear his cousins laughing and playing upstairs, and his aunts were in the kitchen, chatting. He didn't hear his mom.

He stumbled away from the door and headed for the stairs before he was spotted. He just wanted to go upstairs and be alone...

Instead of going to his bedroom, he went straight into the bathroom, and locked the door behind him. His messenger bag was dropped to the floor as he made a bee-line for the shower. He turned it on and stepped inside, not bothering to take off his clothes. Instead he leant against the tiled wall and let the warm water run over him, staring blankly ahead of him. His soaked clothes stuck to his body and he slowly slid down the wall, bringing his knees up close to his chest. Blood swirled with the water, running down the drain.

He couldn't even cry. It felt like there was a block, like a brick wall in his mind, preventing him from feeling anything. He doubted he'd be able to speak, even if he wanted to. Which he didn't.

Chris leant his head down so his forehead was rested against his knees. He kept his eyes open and let the beads of water drip off the end of his eyelashes as he sat there, rigid. He didn't move a muscle, not even when he got cold enough for goosebumps to form on his skin. He shivered, and his teeth started to chatter slightly as the cold water beat down on him, and he hugged himself tighter.

After a few mind numbing minutes, Chris lifted his head and ran a hand through his soaking wet hair. Then he did it again, then started rubbing his face with both hands, then his neck and his arms and legs, hard and fast until his nails scraped his pale skin and beads of blood appeared along the long, red scratches. He felt dirty...he needed that feeling to go away.

Finally he stopped, his hands shaking and the scratches starting to sting under the steady flow of water. His breath shuddered and he knuckled his hands in his hair as he bent his head forward again. He started rocking slightly and clenched his teeth tightly as he tried to urge the images in his head to go away. But they didn't, and he whimpered in distress, hot tears stinging his eyes behind his closed eyelids. He clutched his hair tighter and his throat started to ache as he tried to keep himself from sobbing.

There was a knocking on the wooden door of the bathroom but Chris couldn't bring himself to look up and answer. Whoever it was knocked again and Chris whimpered again, wishing they would go away. He couldn't let any of them see him like this. If they did they'd want to know what happened...

"Hello? Chris?" came the voice of his aunt Paige. Chris bit his bottom lip hard, his eyes clenched shut. He hoped that if he didn't answer, then maybe she would just go away but another moment passed and she knocked again.

"I-I'm in the shower." Chris called, his voice sounding weird, even to him. Croaky like he'd been screaming for hours.

"Oh, ok honey. You're mom isn't in from work yet but me and Phoebe are down in the kitchen if you need us, okay?" his aunt said through the wood.

"Okay." Chris answered and Paige left to go back downstairs.

After a few moments of staring at the door, Chris swallowed thickly and blinked rapidly. He could taste blood in his mouth and realised he must have bitten his lip too hard a few minutes ago. It stung as he felt the small bite with his tongue.

Chris planted his hands on the tile floor and slowly he started pushing himself up until he was standing. He turned off the shower and stood there for a moment, listening to the water dripping off his hair and clothes into the puddles at his feet, before slowly walking over to the mirror that hung above the sink. His clothes were soaking wet and made puddles wherever he walked but he really couldn't care less. Instead he looked into the mirror to see his reflection.

His left cheek was all scraped from when he'd been shoved into the wall and there were bruises under his right eye and jaw from where he'd been punched. Blood trickled from the bite in his lip and mingled with the droplets of water on his face. Chris blinked a few times, and realised that he could barely stand to look himself in the eye. It was like they were windows to the past and the pain radiated out of them until he had to screw them shut to stop himself from crying.

After taking a moment to compose himself, Chris opened his eyes and looked down at himself. His self-inflicted scratches stood out prominently on his pale skin, and there were lots of them running down his arms and on his legs, criss-crossing here and there. Bruises on his wrists and arms were starting to form. His clothes stuck to his body and he looked at them in disgust, fingering the white material of his skirt.

Then, slowly at first, he started pulling at the clothes, until it turned into a hurried frenzy to get them off. They too only reminded him of what had happened, and he needed them to go away. That...that monster had touched these clothes, crept his hands under them to feel his skin, and it made Chris feel physically sick. He winced as he tore the ribbon out of his hair and chucked it across the room so it landed on the water spattered tiles. He stood breathing heavily for a moment before he grabbed one of the thick white towels and wrapped it around himself. A small, shuddering sigh of relief left his lips.

It was ok. He just needed to get to his room and go to sleep and no-one would ever need to know. Maybe then he'd wake up to discover this was all just a horrible nightmare...

Chris swallowed and grabbed his soaking clothes from the floor before he opened the bathroom door and hesitantly stepped out. His cousins were still to be heard playing in their own rooms and he crept across the carpeted hall and into his own bedroom.

It was dark in the room but Chris didn't turn on the light. Part of the room was bathed in an orange-y glow from a street lamp outside, creating large shadows to dance across the pale blue walls. Chris dropped the sopping clothes so they landed with a wet thud by the door, and went over to his wardrobe so he could get out some clothes to put on.

After drying himself, Chris got dressed into a long sleeved black t-shirt and pyjama bottoms. All that material would hide the scratches he'd inflicted on himself, apart from the little ones on his face and neck, and the bruises so he'd be able to avoid questions about that at least. The injuries to his face however would be a problem. His mom would freak when she saw the state he was in, and Chris thought hard about a lie that could explain this.

* * *

Piper inserted her key into the keyhole and turned it until she heard the tell tale click of the door unlocking. She pushed open the door and sighed in relief as the warmth from the house swept over her. Closing the door and leaving the bitter cold outside, Piper made her way through to the kitchen where she heard her sisters talking. 

"Hey." she said as she walked in.

"Hey." Her sisters chorused back to her as she placed her handbag on the counter and sat down wearily on a stool beside them.

"What took you so long?" Phoebe asked. "You were meant to be home an hour and a half ago."

"Problems with the manager." Piper groaned. "I seriously need to fire his ass..."

She looked up at the clock then back at her sisters. "Is Chris in?" she asked.

"Yeah, he was in the shower when I checked on him." Paige replied. "He's probably back in his room now."

"Okay, that's good." Piper yawned and rubbed her eyes. "I suppose there's no point in asking if Leo's in yet?"

Her sisters smiled sympathetically at her and shook their heads. Being a doctor, Leo worked long and hard hours and there were times when Piper would only see him in the mornings, considering she was normally fast asleep in their bed when he got home. She didn't resent his work, because she knew how important it was, but it would still be nice to have her husband home to spend some time with once in a while.

"If it's any consolation, Henry and Coop aren't in yet either." Paige said kindly and Piper gave her a small smile for trying to cheer her up.

"It's okay." she said and she yawned again. "I think I'm going to go to bed anyway."

"Already?" Phoebe asked, glancing at the clock.

"Yeah, I'm exhausted." Piper replied as she stood up. "See you in the morning."

"Night." her sisters chorused and she grabbed her handbag before leaving the kitchen.

She went into the bathroom after changing into a pair of pyjamas so she could wash the make-up off her face. After splashing her face with the cool water to get rid of the soap, she dried her face with one of the towels and looked at her reflection in the mirror above the sink.

A flash of baby blue caught her eye and she turned around to see Chris's hair ribbon lying on the tiles. She frowned and walked over, picking it up. It was soaking wet and still in the tight knot it had been tied in that morning.

Piper closed her hand around the ribbon and decided to go see her son to give him it back. He probably forgot it after having his shower.

"Chris?" she called through the door after knocking. Hearing some movement she turned the handle and pushed open the door into the dark room.

"Chris?" she said again. She squinted her eyes and saw the unmistakable shape of a body lying underneath the covers on his bed and walked over.

Chris turned around so he was lying on his back and looked up at her as she reached him. She could barely see his face, just the general outlines of his features, but she could see the glint of his eyes.

"You not feeling well sweetie?" she asked with concern. Chris was never in bed this early and he was being unusually quiet. She sat down on the edge of the bed and placed the ribbon on the bedside table. Chris silently shook his head.

"What's up?" she asked. "Is your head sore?"

"Yeah." Chris uttered quietly, so quietly that Piper barely heard him. Maybe he had a sore throat too, which really wouldn't be good. She didn't want him to miss any school.

Piper reached forward and clicked on the bedside light so she could see him properly. At the same time Chris turned his head away from her, but it wouldn't stop Piper from seeing the damage. Her eyes widened and she gasped when she saw the bruising and scrapes.

"Chris, what happened?" she asked, shocked. Chris just shook his head, saying nothing, but Piper wasn't going to let it drop. She frowned in concern and reached out to cup his chin but Chris flinched and she quickly withdrew her hand.

"Who did this to you?"

Chris remained silent and Piper shook her head, getting more concerned by the minute. Had he been beaten up at school? Was he getting bullied?

"Chris answer me." Piper demanded firmly and after a moment Chris's eyes flickered in her direction. She said nothing and just looked back at him, waiting for him to say something.

"I got into a fight after school." Chris said quietly, not quite meeting her eyes.

Piper stared at him, her eyes taking in the bruises and scrapes that littered his face. It must have been a pretty bad fight if he'd come out like that. Shaking her head, she took in a deep breath.

"Who was it?" she asked again.

"What?"

"Who was the person that you were in a fight with?" Piper pressed, feeling anger bubbling up in her. Some snot nosed teenager had done this to her baby?

"It doesn't matter..." Chris mumbled, looking away from her. He wished he could just disappear. Sink through the floor boards and just be forgotten about.

"Yes it does Chris!" Piper argued. "Now who was it?"

"Why?" Chris asked, a weird feeling in his stomach. He didn't want her to know, yet part of him did. Part of him was screaming and crying and it wanted to tell mom everything. But the other part, the much larger and stronger part didn't, and so that little voice in his head was put on mute.

"So I can phone the school and complain!"

Complain? She really thought complaining to someone could fix this?

"It wasn't someone from my school mom. It was just some random kid." Chris tried to explain. His voice was still quiet, and his eyes started to sting. He wasn't actually sure WHO it had been. He'd recognised the voice, but he just didn't know...

Piper went silent and curled her hands into fists. She was angry, couldn't believe some kid could be so horrible as to beat Chris up on his way home. She swallowed, letting out a deep breath, and decided not to press the matter for now.

"Okay, sit up." she said, and Chris slowly did as she said, keeping his eyes lowered. Piper gently reached forward and this time Chris let her touch him, despite wincing slightly. She lightly cupped his chin and tilted his head from left to right so she could inspect the damage.

"Alright, stay there." she instructed. "I'm gonna get the first aid kit."

"Mom, I'm fine." Chris insisted, his voice feeling scratchy in his throat. Piper didn't listen, waving him off, and left the room to the first aid kit.

Chris pressed his lips together, feeling the tears well up in his eyes. Why couldn't she understand he wanted to be left alone? He blinked and two tears dripped down his cheeks, stinging the scrapes, and he wiped them away just as Piper walked back in.

"Ok, here we go." Piper said softly, opening the kit and taking out the antiseptic cream. "This will sting a little."

She dabbed some of the cream on to his injuries, Chris wincing and shifting away from her at times. It stung like hell, and Piper continuingly apologised until she was finally finished. She clipped the first aid kit closed and looked at her son sympathetically. Chris was looking down at his hands, hoping that the tears that were know clearly visible would be passed off as result of his face stinging.

"Chris, sweetie..." she began, but Chris shook his head.

"I'm okay mom. I just want to go to sleep." Chris whispered. His long bags fell over his eyes as he looked down.

Piper looked at him for a moment, worrying, but finally she sighed softly and nodded.

"Alright honey." she said gently. She kissed his forehead and stood up. "Call me if you need anything."

Chris nodded and waited till Piper had left the room. Once he heard the echo of her footsteps disappearing down the hall, he slumped down on to his side and curled into a ball, squeezing his eyes shut. He didn't want to cry, but the stinging tears managed to leak out underneath his closed eyelids and rolled down his cheeks. His body shook and his throat ached as he tried to stop the sobs threatening to rack his body but the images in his head, the pain, become too much, and suddenly he was crying uncontrollably into his pillow.

* * *

Chris had barely managed to get a couple of hours sleep that night. He kept waking up, whimpering and crying after reliving his rape over and over again in his dreams. Every time he shut his eyelids, those eyes haunted him and he heard the coarse voice in his head, muttering over and over again. It got to the point where Chris lay staring straight up at the ceiling, pinching his arm, hard, under the covers to keep himself awake. His eyes stung from exhaustion, his eyelids felt unbearably heavy, but he would rather suffer that than those nightmares. 

However, in the early hours of the morning, Chris just couldn't stay awake any longer and he fell into a fitful sleep. He didn't know Piper heard him moaning in distress and fear on her way back to her room from going to the bathroom, or that she'd come into his room and stroked his hair with worry etched across her face. He didn't know she'd kissed his forehead ever so gently and left the room with the intent of phoning his school later that morning to let them know Chris wouldn't be in that day.

What he did know when he finally woke up again, was how much pain he was in. There was deep ache all through his body; his back, his neck, between his legs... He squeezed his eyes shut, letting out a groan, before trying to sit up. His arms shook uncontrollably and before he could push himself up fully, they gave out underneath him and he fell back on the mattress. He was tired, so tired, and he just felt weak. His head was pounding, the scratches had started to scab and where catching on his clothes, and the bruises were stinging painfully.

There was a knock but before Chris could answer, Piper let herself in. Chris snapped his eyes shut, hoping maybe he could still feign sleep, but Piper had already seen him awake. She walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed, tying the ties on her dressing gown into a knot.

She reached out, stroking a few strands of hair from Chris's closed eyes.

"How are you feeling sweetie?" she asked gently, and Chris slowly opened his eyes. She smiled at him but he just looked back at her, showing no emotion.

"Okay." he whispered. He blinked a few times to get rid of the remnants of sleep. "What time is it?"

"9:00." Piper replied.

"9:00? But I should have been at school half an hour ago." Chris replied quietly. He didn't sound particularly bothered about it and made no attempt at moving.

"I know." Piper replied, stroking his hair. "I called them and told them you had a throat infection. I figured it would be a good thing for you to just rest today."

"Thanks mom." Chris croaked. He tried to force a smile on to his face but it didn't quite happen, and the corners of his mouth just quirked upwards slightly.

"No problem sweetie." Piper smiled, patting Chris's arm gently. She smoothed out his comforter and stood up. "Okay, you just go back to sleep. I'll be making breakfast for you when you get up."

"'Kay." Chris mumbled and Piper smiled again before she left.

Chris stared at the door for a couple of minutes. He didn't want to go to sleep, no at all, but after a few more moments, his eyelids started to drop. They closed, then he opened them again. Then they closed again, and he opened them again. The fifth time the closed however, they stayed closed and he fell into a deep, but troubling sleep.

* * *

It was several hours later when Chris finally awoke again and mustered the strength to go downstairs. The smell of pancakes cooking reached his senses and with his arms wrapped around himself, he walked into the kitchen to see his mom cooking the breakfast whilst listening to the radio. She turned around when she heard him walking in and gave him a smile before turning her head back and flipping the pancake. 

Chris sat down gingerly on the stool, wincing as he did so, and kept his eyes lowered glumly. He wasn't hungry, he actually felt sick, but he didn't say a word when Piper placed the plate of pancakes in front of him with a bottle of maple syrup.

"There you go." she said kindly, handing him a knife and fork.

"Thanks." Chris mumbled. He looked down at the pancakes, swallowing.

"Well I'm gonna go have a shower." Piper said, then she glanced at him. "Will you be okay?"

Normally, Chris would have rolled his eyes at her and say something along the lines of "Mom, I'm not some stupid little kid!", but this time he just gave a small, silent nod. Piper gave him another smile but when she left the kitchen to go upstairs, the smile disappeared to be replaced by a worried frown. She wasn't sure what was wrong with her son, but there was definitely something on his mind. Maybe he was scared of it happening again? Chris had been picked on before, not bullied, but picked on. Normally he didn't let it bother him. But it _was _different if this time violence had been used against him...

Piper sighed deeply and went into the bathroom to have her shower. She just wished she could understand.

* * *

You know the drill! Please review!


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